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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24799831">There is something about Yui</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/stellalouise/pseuds/stellalouise'>stellalouise</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Dead by Daylight (Video Game)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Curious Jake, Eventual Romance, F/M, Humor, Jake can't flirt, Meet-Cute, a bit of angst, facemask, oblivious Yui, ugly flowers</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 00:35:15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>7,747</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24799831</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/stellalouise/pseuds/stellalouise</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Jake has a thing for masks. Yui's got a nice one. That was enough for him to ignite a spark of interest toward the pretty biker.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Jake Park/Yui Kimura</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>11</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Crappy masks and rusty pliers</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <b>There is something about Yui</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>This was written in honor of my favourite Jake Park’s cosmetic. Enjoy! :)</b>
</p><p> </p><p>Summary : Jake has a thing for masks. Yui’s got a nice one.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <b>Chapter 1: Crappy masks and rusty pliers</b>
</p><p> </p><p>His hair tied up in a high ponytail, Jake was frowning disapprovingly at Feng Min.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Why did she have to ruin it like that?, </em>
  <span>the young man thought, his gaze still fixated on the fearful, yet determined survivor. </span>
  <em>It was perfectly fine like it was.</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Now, Jake Park, as a self-exiled survivalist extraordinaire, wasn’t exactly a fashion icon, even before this whole nightmarish mess known by its inhabitants as the Fog. However, he had a very precise idea of what he liked and didn’t like.</p><p> </p><p>The Asian lady’s face mask, with its newly added cartoony smile, definitely landed in the last category.</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>- Are you okay, Jake? said Nea, who was sitting on the other side of the campfire, right next to </span>
  <span>Feng </span>
  <span>Min. </span>
  <span>The way she asked showed she clearly thought he wasn’t.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He averted his gaze from the monstrosity of the former gamer’s mask to stare right at Nea’s fluorescent hair. </span>
  <span>Her mask didn’t match with her pink hair. It made him irrationally annoyed. </span>
  <span>He simply nodded before forcing himself to look, for the umpteenth time, at the same ever-burning log. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The thing is that it wasn’t okay. The survivor realized how focusing his attention on a stupid piece of cloth was dumb and useless, as there were more important matters at hand, notably homicidal maniacs roaming around the campfire, but Jake simply couldn’t help it: he loved masks </span>
  <span>too much. Indeed, they were useful to bite into, to hide his face, to protect from the dirt, and even from the cold. He felt protected, invulnerable even, when he wore his (which was almost always, nowadays). In a ridiculous way, he felt mysterious, badass. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>- You should draw hearts on your mask: it would be cute! said Claudette (who, Jake must say, spoke English as a second language really well) to an uninterested Nea.</p><p>Jake didn’t miss a beat:</p><p>- Nah, it wouldn’t.</p><p> </p><p>* * * *</p><p> </p><p>Jake was fiddling with a shitty toolbox, trying to pack as much accessories as he could into it. As usual, he was sitting near the edge of the campfire, a place he wouldn’t have dared approach a few billion trials before being aware of the Killers’ inability to violently grab them there.</p><p> </p><p>- Shit!</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He had just cut himself </span>
  <span>with rusty pliers. </span>
  <em>Great</em>
  <span>, he though. </span>
  <em>Maybe tetanus will take me out of this foggy hell. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>- </span>
  <span>You okay?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>Without even looking up, he knew it was the newcomer, Yui Kimura, who talked. He realized he wasn’t exactly a ray of sunshine, preferring to keep to himself most of the time, but he really would have liked for people to stop asking him this question. He was in an Eldritch’s abomination world: he definitely wasn’t okay.</p><p> </p><p>He wiped the blood from his wound, aware of the young woman crouching next to him. Jake was a nice person, but he really liked being alone: he wasn’t interested in chit-chatting with Yui Kimura, as rude as it sounds.</p><p> </p><p>He mumbled something, trying to form a coherent sentence as to not look like a complete antisocial dick, when he felt another rag, this one cleaner, being pressed on his injury.</p><p> </p><p>He was about to explain to her the fundamental importance of personal space in a crammed up campfire when his eyes laid on her face. Despite not being able to see it, for it was hidden behind a mask very similar to his, Jake could see that Yui was smiling.</p><p>Her warm eyes and the little wrinkles at the corner of them told him.</p><p> </p><p>- Nice mask, she said before rising up and going back to the fire.</p><p> </p><p>Surprised, Jake watched her go, eyes carefully assessing the ponytail and mask that curiously matched his. She seemed relaxed, carefree even, in this disturbing setting.</p><p> </p><p>Maybe he would have to be a bit more social, for Yui.</p><p>***</p><p>Hihi! The minute I saw Yui’s face mask cosmetic, I knew I had to write something about Jake and her. There will be an update this week, pinky swear!</p><p> </p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Of great timing and brown eyes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Always the solitary one, Jake starts studying Yui from afar. As you would think, it's absolutely not creepy.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <b>There is something about Yui</b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>Summary :</b>
  <span>
    <span> Always the solitary one, Jake starts studying Yui from afar. As you would think, it’s absolutely not creepy.</span>
  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>
    <span>This chapter was written with a song I have heard this morning in mind: ‘’Love potion no. 9’’, by the Clovers. Enjoy! </span>
  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>
    <span>Chapter 2: Of </span>
    <span>great</span>
    <span> timing </span>
    <span>and brown eyes</span>
  </b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn’t know what fascinated him more: the way her ponytail stayed perfectly tied up, even as she ran for her life (literally) among the boxes and crates of the Macmillan estate, or the way she had mastered breathing efficiently through the mask (Feng always breathed loudly through her mouth because of hers and Nea couldn’t stand having her mask over her nose for too long).</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Yes</em>
  <span>, Jake thought as Yui fell to the ground with a scream, the Trapper having finally managed to gracefully slashed her back open, </span>
  <em>she really understood the way to properly use such a practical piece of cloth</em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Yui yelled again as the Trapper hit her with one brutal kick to the gut and Jake snapped back to reality.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Shit, the hook!</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Crouched behind a big crate, his high ponytail only visible by an inch, he made his way to the nearest hook and quickly sabotaged it. With his evil deed done, he rapidly made his way back to his hiding place just as the Trapper picked a very bloody Yui up.</p><p> </p><p>- HELP! NOOO! she screamed, kicking and trying to break free from the Killer, her red wounds almost glowing under the bright moon.</p><p> </p><p>Jake kept quiet and stifled a laugh at the Trapper’s pissed off groan when he finally arrived at the sabotaged hook.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>Ha! You dumb bitch.</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Somewhere, he heard a generator pop off. Was it the third, maybe fourth one? He didn’t know. Actually, beside following Yui around everywhere (at a reasonable distance and always hidden, of course), Jake hadn’t done shit, this trial. It was a bit embarrassing, but he couldn’t control his unhealthy obsession with the masked lady, acting like a young teenager with a crush every time he saw her (which, as a resident of an inescapable fog, happened quite often).</p><p> </p><p>Talking to her would have probably been easier, but he had always been a bit self-conscious, a gift he had inherited in his anterior life from living with an elitist and demanding family.</p><p> </p><p>Yeah, Jake had it bad, even if he didn’t really want to admit it. Where was this infatuation for a pretty biker with a mesmerizing face mask and a lack of awareness for personal space even came from? He couldn’t pinpoint it.</p><p> </p><p>Suddenly, as Yui managed to break free and flee from an enraged Trapper, Jake had an illumination.</p><p> </p><p>It was her eyes.</p><p> </p><p>When wearing their face mask, Nea’s eyes perpetually emanated a pissed off aura, while Feng Min’s ones appeared cold and way too focused on a personal goal; however, Yui’s brown eyes looked warm, caring, determined…</p><p> </p><p>Yes, it was her eyes. That’s the first thing he saw when she first talked to him: the way she smiled through them.</p><p> </p><p>Jake was pleased to have finally understood where his obsession with masks came from. It was a desire to judge people from the only thing that couldn’t lie: their eyes.</p><p> </p><p>Feeling pretty satisfied despite Dwight’s pained screams ringing in the estate, Jake was preparing to turn around to quietly continue his stalking when he unexpectedly came face to face with Yui Kimura’s bloodstained mask:</p><p> </p><p>- Heal me, please, she pleaded, her mouth dripping with blood.</p><p> </p><p>Jake didn’t know how to tell her he had simply brought a shitty key.</p><p> </p><p>* * *</p><p> </p><p>There you go! :) I like voyeuristic Jake, haha. Chapter 3 will come tomorrow.</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you for reading! :)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Of mixed feelings and creepiness</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Bushes are a great place to understand one's own feelings.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <b>There is something about Yui </b>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>Chapter 3: Of mixed feelings and creepiness<br/></b>
</p><p>Yui looked agitated, tonight (even though it was always nighttime, in the Fog), Jake decided. Indeed, the young woman kept looking at him from the log she was sitting on, quickly adverting her gaze when their eyes met – which was all the time since Jake couldn’t stop staring at her from usual his spot near the treeline. He probably looked a bit weirder than ordinary, camouflaged in the thick foliage of the bushes, far away from everyone and only his squinted eyes visible, but the saboteur didn’t give a crap: he liked peace and discretion. According to him, these glorious bushes provided that.</p><p>The mysterious – and definitely very pretty – biker was now whispering something to Nea, who turned to openly glare at him, her ugly ass mask dangling on her face. Jake didn’t care about the Swedish woman’s opinion or feelings towards him. The easiest way to summarize the disaster of their relationship was a description of the too many trials they shared together: she clicked, he sabotaged. That pretty much summed it up.</p><p>Uninterested at looking at the unsatisfying mop of pink hair in front of him, he returned with calm to his now favourite hobby: staring, in what he considered a subtle way, at Yui Kimura. Ah, much better.</p><p>Indifferent to the possibility of a Killer trying his luck with the Entity and deciding to violently smack his back with a hammer or worse, a chainsaw, Jake contemplated what made the Japanese woman so attractive to him. He had already established, in his recent trial against the Trapper, that eyes held a special place in his attractiveness scoring board; obviously, it was the same with masks. However, it had recently occurred to him that he had never seen her <em>without </em><span>it. Even though he didn’t consider himself a superficial person, the question was still important...</span></p><p>What was Yui like, under her mysterious facial veil?</p><p>Jake licked his lips and readjusted his mask, his eyes focused on the biker, analyzing her: she was kind of petite, yet muscular, and she definitely took pride in her appearance before being constantly smeared in hemoglobin in these limbos. Her nails, long and bright, probably weren’t very practical to screw nails and all the mechanical stuff they were required to do to escape trials, but he didn’t remember hearing anyone complain about the way she completed objectives. That was saying a lot, since bickering and accusations tend to happen quite regularly, especially after bad trials. She had black hair with blonde streaks, and Jake felt like he would have hated it on any other woman than her. Yui seemed like a competent enough survivor: she usually managed to loop Killers effectively, she didn’t blow up generators too often, and was never seen cowering in a corner. À la Bill, she would without a doubt be insulted at anyone acting as if she was a fragile person needing to be protected: her attitude, despite friendly, screamed independent. From what he had seen from his endless creeping sessions, she also appeared interested in mechanics, knowing right away which one to use at the perfect time.</p><p>Jake liked that. A lot.</p><p>Nevertheless, he still had no idea what she looked like under her mask. Maybe it was better that way: he had been surrounded by so many fake and shallow people that judging them by their eyes and actions was probably the best way to go about his crush.</p><p>He stopped thinking immediately: was Yui really her <em>crush</em>? In this eternal hell, where they appeared to be stuck forever? He almost wanted to laugh: what was he going to do? Ask her out?</p><p>He started snickering, the leaves of the bushes shaking violently, which attracted another panicked glance from Yui and a few other survivors: he had just imagined himself picking a few flowers in the fog behind him to please her. And what was gonna happen if they fought and separated? He would be stuck with his ex?</p><p>The survivalist realized at this very moment he wasn’t only curious about Yui: he was irrevocably, completely, and creepily infatuated with Yui Kimura</p><p>* * * * *</p><p>To say Yui was confused was an understatement. What had started with a simple curiosity toward the brooding survivalist had turned to perplexity and now, she was a bit creeped out: what did she do wrong? Now, Yui wasn’t usually losing sleep over a strange yet cute man, but beside sitting around an ever-burning campfire, she didn’t have much to do but let her mind wander toward what bothered her.</p><p>She chewed on her masked bottom lip anxiously, throwing yet another glance at the shaking bushes. She could make out two eyes staring right at her. What was his problem, and most importantly, what was <em>hers?</em> It wasn’t like herself to cower in front of anyone, much less an intimidating man, but this Park dude made her nervous... Who wouldn’t be?</p><p>Yui had already completed a few trials and had adjusted to the best she could to her new reality. She had started making a few friendships out of these acquaintances and had noticed the survivalist some trials ago. He was working on a toolbox, alone in his corner, and she wanted to go say hi.</p><p>- What are you doing? had said her Swedish roommate, Nea, when she had seen Yui standing up.</p><p>- I’m gonna go say hi to him. I haven’t introduced myself yet, Yui said, a small smile on her lips.</p><p>- Jake Park doesn’t give a shit about anyone but himself, I wouldn’t lose time with him, bitterly snarled Nea.</p><p>- Hey, Jake is super useful and nice, exclaimed Meg, frowning. He just likes being alone.</p><p>Not being one to be told what to do, Yui still decided to go. Besides, she preferred judging people by herself. She came closer to the man sitting cross-legged near the forest. She was afraid to go this far away from the safety of the flames, but she braced herself: she was brave too, goddammit!</p><p>A pained groan erased the smile from her face: looked like Jake had cut himself! She crouched rapidly:</p><p>- You okay?</p><p>She quickly grabbed one of her pink handkerchiefs and pressed it on his wound. They looked at each other and she smiled: he only stared at her and her mask. She left, leaving him to tend to his wound, but she now wondered if it had been the right thing to do: judging by his ever growing creepiness, maybe she had annoyed him.</p><p>He had helped her, though: when they faced the Trapper together, he had sabotaged a hook and found a muddy leaf to patch the worst of her wounds. He didn’t talk, though, and kept frowning at her above his mask. Did he think she was some sort of liability to the group? It wasn’t her fault, if she was new. Maybe he wanted to monitor her, to judge if he could trust her? Anyway, this situation was painfully weird. She had enough on her plate already: no need to add a stalker to the list! The Shape and Ghostface already filled the position beautifully.</p><p>- Are you okay?</p><p>Surprised, Yui turned to her right to look at a smiling man with sunglasses. He had a cigarette in his left hand. <em>Nasty habit</em>, thought the biker. She smiled nonetheless: it was his lungs, after all, and did it really matter anymore anyway?</p><p>- Yes, I am okay. Ace, right?</p><p>- The one and only!</p><p>He laughed before throwing a quick glance at the bushes hiding Jake Park.</p><p>- Seems like you have an admirer!</p><p>She turned bright red:</p><p>- I wouldn’t say that! He doesn’t seem to like me very much.</p><p>She added, lower this time:</p><p>- I think I offended him.</p><p>Ace laughed again, his chest shaking:</p><p>- I’m not so sure about that!</p><p>With that, he turned around to chat with one of the loudest survivors, Ash, and Yui was once again left to her thoughts.</p><p>
  <em>That’s it</em>
  <span>, she thought with a flair of anger. </span>
  <em>I won’t pay attention to him anymore. If I angered him, he’ll have to repeatedly die mad about it!</em>
</p><p>Laughing at her own ridiculous joke, Yui waved at Adam, the nice Jamaican man sitting on the other side of the campfire. He waved back with a smile and made a sign for her to come sit next to him.</p><p>Smiling under her mask, she stood up. Finally, a normal human interaction!</p><p>A few meters away, the bushes shook with indignation.</p><p>* * * * *</p><p>I realized that my two previous chapters were super short and could have probably fit in one: oops!</p><p>Also, since the survivors come from different countries with different languages, do you think the Entity made it possible for them to understand what everyone was saying?</p><p>Happy late Canada day and Fourth of July to you all! :)</p><p>I will post Chapter 4 next week.</p><p>Kisses,</p><p>Stella.</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Of undignified falls and violent deaths</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Jake continues his 'subtle' observation, all while Yui's got an insisting potential suitor.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>There is something about Yui</p><p>Chapter 4: Of undignied falls and violent deaths</p><p>I hope you all had a great day and if not, tomorrow will be better! :) Also, sorry for updating so late: I finally had the inspiration to continue my original story, so I focused on that.<br/>                                                                    *** <br/>-  You need to leave her alone.</p><p>Out of pettiness, Jake almost deliberately let the generator they were working on explode: however, as he was not a complete and suicidal idiot, he opted to simply furrow his brows and ignore his Swedish companion of misfortune. </p><p>Irritatingly, Nea wasn’t going to let his silence slide.</p><p>She scooted closer to him, her hands still deep in the mangled generator, to whisper-scream at him: </p><p>- I know you heard me, Park. Leave her the fuck alone.</p><p>He slowly turned his head toward her in defiance, but to his annoyance, couldn’t control the blush creeping on his cheeks. Ever the stubborn one, he muttered with as much venom as he could:</p><p>- I don’t know what you’re talking about, Clicky.</p><p>She gasped at the insult before clenching her teeth, her hands still expertly tugging on the different wires despite her eyes still glued on him.</p><p>- You fucking know what I am talking about. Yui's just arrived. She doesn’t need a creepy stalker to annoy her: she already has enough on her plate.</p><p>Thankfully, Jake had chosen to wear his mask again and thus, could hide the sumptuous tomato color he was now sporting. Was his infatuation with Yui that obvious? Well, now that he thought about it, maybe following her for the last six trials might have been a little extreme, as was sniffing loudly and regularly the handkerchief she had given him the first time they talked, but Jake didn’t consider the others could have noticed anything. He always considered himself a very stealthy and subtle man: why did these qualities had to let him down at such a critical moment of his young life?</p><p>-  I don’t know what you’re problem with her is, Park, but you better stop adding to her stress.</p><p>Jake was getting more and more annoyed: who the hell did she think she was? She had no business in the disaster of his personal life. Nea and him had a long history, together, being that they became prisoners of the Fog almost at the same time: that didn’t mean they appreciated each other, though. They merely tolerated the presence of the other simply because they had to, as a small group. Also, creepy? He wasn’t creepy: he was a curious introvert, that’s all. If the Entity didn’t want them to use the bushes, It wouldn’t have created them, godammit!</p><p> -  Leave it, he hissed through clenched teeth.</p><p>In his irritation and frustration, he yanked a bit too hard on a sparkling wire, which caused the generator to loudly blow up.</p><p>- Shit!</p><p>He quickly checked his hands, his heart still beating fast from the shock: thankfully, he was wearing gloves. They were slightly burned, but his palms seemed okay. Nea, on the other hand, didn’t seem phased at all by the explosion, despite her beanie now full of dying embers. She continued hissing furiously, as if nothing happened and the Huntress’ haunting melody wasn’t coming their way. Why did she care so much about his interest toward Yui?</p><p>-  I’m serious, Park -</p><p>Jake didn’t have the chance to hear Nea repeat herself; indeed, a hatchet came straight at the Swedish woman’s frontal lobe, neatly cutting it in a spectacular splash of blood. </p><p>Jake started running like a mad man, not caring for a second about dismantling a hook or activating his notorious ninja stealth. Considering Nea’s current state, which was what remained of her face flat in the mud, the Huntress probably wouldn’t need a rusty piece of metal to impale her on.</p><p>.                                                                  *** <br/>Yui stared at the lifeless body on the ground, her face paler than usual. Despite the blood and pieces of brain scattered around the unfortunate victim, she could still make out who the person was.</p><p>Nea.</p><p>She felt tears filling up her eyes. Despite the ever-growing number of trials she had been sent too, seeing dead people* had never become easy. One more cadaver meant two things. First, it was one less person to help the other survivors escape from the killer. Second, it meant that the unfortunate – and now very dead – Nea would have forgotten everything. In fact, she had come to learn that when someone died, in this gruesome universe, it was as if the slate of their memories was completely erased. Nea would come back as if she had never set foot in this dimension, as if all the faces she would see would be new to her. In a way, they were going to be. It was sad, but every survivor went through that. Ace recently revealed to Yui that it had happened to her, too. All the relationships, friendships, strategies, knowledge, and memories gone just like that, in a blink of a deadly weapon.</p><p>It was awfully depressing. Terrifying, even. </p><p>Yui sat down at the regressing generator, breathing in. She had a job to do and that entailed this pesky little generator. </p><p>.                                                                      *** </p><p>Nea had died a few trials ago and even if she annoyed Jake to no end, he was glad to see her come back. A companion of misfortune was a companion nonetheless, and the young man was definitely glad to see Clicky back in action.</p><p>What he wasn’t glad about was how Yui seemed to have befriended Adam Francis. The intellectual – Jake scoffed at the word – took an extremely annoying habit to sit closer and closer to the pretty biker. Of course, Nea was always on the other side of her. They usually spoke quietly, laughing occasionally, with Adam finding every excuses in the book to touch her arm, her hand. Jake doubted the other survivors noticed, because, quite frankly, nobody appeared to look at Yui as much as he did (not even Adam) and, well, his bush was the closest to the campfire. </p><p>He impatiently ousted some crows perched around him, their betrayed cries flying around him. Some survivors threw unsure glances toward the saboteur, but all returned to their normal occupation: Jake being weird was now just as normal as Meg running in circles for a ridiculous long time. Of all the survivors, only Ace smiled knowingly, but had the decency to keep to himself. Jake frowned, peeking his head out of the bush. Something annoyed him even more than Adam trying to be interesting. </p><p>His masked lady had completely stopped looking at him.</p><p>He couldn’t understand why. Even when he was trying to be as sneaky as possible, she always turned her (sometimes freaked out, he had to admit) gaze toward him, but now? It was as if she ignored him on purpose, even when he silently left medkits or toolboxes he had found next to her, in trials, stared, and quickly crept away, leaving her at the generator she was working on. </p><p>Jake was not anti-social: he was introverted, calm, focused, and preferred silence over words. He had also just realized that he was extremely shy when in presence of a girl he very much like and that he had a somewhat unhealthy kink toward masks. Nevertheless, he would have to do a move soon: he refused to sit by and let the object of his affection get charmed by another – and better at that than him – man. So, taking his courage in both hands, he exited the bush and before he could speak, fell face flat on the ground.</p><p>Well, shit. Maybe nobody had noticed! He stood up, dusted himself off and raised his chin, only to realize that all the campfire peeps were staring at him. Everyone except Yui, of course. </p><p>He inhaled and sat down between her and Nea, earning an outraged ‘Hey!’ from the latter. He ignored Adam’s frown and finally had the chance to stare into Yui’s uncertain eyes, as she finally looked at him.</p><p>He plunged his dirty hand in one of his multiple pockets and took out a neatly folded pink handkerchief. Her eyes widened in recognition.<br/>He coughed, extending the piece of cloth to her, still staring in her beautiful orbs:</p><p>- I forgot to give this back to you.</p><p>She slowly opened her hand and took the handkerchief from his sweaty hand.</p><p>- Thank you, she murmured.</p><p>She guessed he had smiled behind his mask, because little creases appeared around his eyes. </p><p>- No. Thank you.</p><p>With that, as if he had suddenly remembered where he was and what he was doing, he stood up rapidly,  almost fell in the fire, and returned in his bush. </p><p>- What a weird ass bitch, said Nea, rolling her eyes.</p><p>Meanwhile, Yui was staring repeatedly at the bush, then at the handkerchief. </p><p>Yes, she thought. He is weird as fuck. </p><p>She slapped Adam’s hand that had just returned to her knee, in a persuasive attempt for her to give him a bit more attention.</p><p>Maybe Ace is right. </p><p> *Note: You almost got yourselves a bad ''The Sixth Sense'' joke, bahaha.*</p><p>Aaaand that’s it for this chapter. I’ve already started the next one: should be out at the end of the week! <br/>Take care, <br/>Colbie.</p>
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<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Ugly flowers and hurt feelings</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Jake is on a mission for Claudette when he gets unsollicited advice.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Welcome back to this fic, people! I'm very sorry for the time it took for me to upload, but I had greatly underestimated my return to work and how my schedule was going to change. <br/>Anyway, I learned my lesson: never post a story if you're not a few chapters in advance, haha. :)<br/>The last chapter of this story will be posted next week. For those interested in Spawn, the next and final chapter will be posted next week too (pinky swear!). <br/>Have a great week and I hope you'll like this one. Kisses!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>There is something about Yui</p><p>Feelings were something the survivors of the Fog were really accustomed with: fear, pain, stress, anger, and, surprisingly, a bit of hope were dealt with on the regular. However, if there was an emotion the Japanese biker never thought she would feel again, it definitely was confusion. In the Entity’s realms, the rules were clear, just as the others’ objective: surviving. After the initial shock of having to settle in the tiny campfire for potentially a lifetime, she had adjusted quite well to her new life as a living bait. Nevertheless, feeling confused by a cute, yet awkward young man hadn’t happened to her a lot, in her previous life: it was quite surprising to find it here, of all places.</p><p>Yui couldn’t say she had a type, but if she would have to guess, it would probably be a guy like Jake: dark, handsome, strong, and mysterious. The only other person who somehow fitted this description, beside the Asian-American, was David, but he looked a bit too much like someone who could break her skull in a fit of drunken rage for her to try something. There was also Adam, of course: the cute intellectual who looked so hot with his red blazer. Sadly for him, Yui didn’t feel any real connection towards the man, even though she was sure he would have loved to be the receiver of the Japanase lady’s undivided attention. So, for a lack of other potential suitors, it was Jake who managed to come on top of the ‘’sexy, yet unhinged’’ list. </p><p>Oh, don’t get her wrong: the more she looked at him, the more fascinated she became, but there was a major factor stopping her from making a move: he was undeniably, dangerously, and irremediably creepy. She was about to try and find other adverbs to qualify the weird man when a roll of gaze landed on her head. See? That’s exactly what she was talking about. Yui momentarily stopped bandaging her calf to throw an uncertain glance toward where the projectile came from: surely enough, two black eyes were fixated on her through the thick foliage of a nearby bush, carefully analyzing her reaction. Unsure of the correct reaction to have, Yui waved uncertainly, a worried expression on her face, before turning her attention back to her mangled leg. </p><p>She took the neatly rolled gaze, touched by the attention: why was he so strange? He seemed to be somewhat of a caring individual, so why couldn’t hedarede simply smile or simply say hello? Did he consider her to be a nuisance that needed protection or worse, someone who had to be monitored constantly? Did he trust her? She rarely died, and beside the obvious relief this piece of info should make her feel, it also made her proud to be able to say how she managed to escape the bloodthirsty maniacs on the regular. Ace had hinted that Jake seemed to care about her more than she realized, but she wasn’t so sure. With the damn mask he sported on the regular, it was impossible to see his mouth, and whenever Yui tried to distinguish any type of emotion in his eyes, she could only focus on the damn frown directed at her. Seriously, she didn’t know what to do. </p><p>You could try talking to him, whispered sweetly  Tomomi, her annoying inner voice. Ask him what the hell is his problem, pull down his mask forcefully, and finally see what is underneath it. He probably has nice features!</p><p>Damn Tomomi and her daredevil plans. Nah, Yui felt too insecure to confront the man. She couldn’t help but scoff: her, insecure? Her biker gang back in Japan would be beyond shocked, but hey, a monstrous spider God would do that to anybody. She didn’t trust her judgment, nor her capacity to strongly assert herself in such a state of mind. The woman deeply hoped her inner strength would come back full force soon, though.</p><p>You’re evading Killers on the regular, Yui: you ARE strong! cried Tomomi, outraged. <br/>‘’You know what I meant’’, whispered Yui with a sigh, resuming the patch up of her wound. However, if Tomomi could be described using only one adjective, it would be ‘’persistent’’.</p><p>Talk to him, Yui! I said talk, you stubborn little -</p><p>- FINE! yelled Yui at her wound, making everyone in ear-sight look in her direction in concern. With a nervous sigh, she cautiously turned around toward Jake and his hiding bush.</p><p>- Thanks, she uttered in what she considered to be a ridiculous voice.</p><p>There was a stillness in the bush. Jake had even stopped blinking! Abruptly, in a sudden movement that caused Yui to jump a little, the young man moved his head forward until his mask was visible. Even though he didn’t say a word, the woman could see his mouth moving under his facial protection, like a sumptuous fish out of water. She started fidgeting with the roll of gaze and showed it uselessly to him to put emphasis on her words:</p><p>- For the gaze, I meant.</p><p>With each second that passed, Yui was becoming more and more uncomfortable: did she misinterpreted   his actions? Did he simply wanted to attack her with this clean and perfectly rolled piece of medical equipment? </p><p>She tried to find the courage to ask him what dangerous factor he found in a ball of gaze when he suddenly put his mask down and whispered:</p><p>- You’re welcome, Yui.</p><p>With that, he quickly retreated to his hiding place, mask covering his mouth and nose once again. Thinking about it, it was a miracle this man wasn’t always covered in leaves and branches: however, Yui had some more pressing matters at hand, notably the butterflies that chose to invade her belly at the sweet sound of her name escaping his mouth AND how handsome the saboteur looked. </p><p>She knew he must have been kind of cute, as she had heard some survivors gossip near the campfire (where else?). Meg was adamant: despite his grumpy eyes, Jake had a very pleasant smile. Even Nea, of all people, had begrudgingly confessed to be in awe with his wonderful black locks of hair. So, yeah, Yui was aware that the man was probably not an ugly slug, but she didn’t expect… that.</p><p>Oh, please! yelled Tomomi excitedly. His tanned skin looks so soft to the touch, his lips are full and look absolutely kissable, his voice is so smooth and -</p><p>Yes, Tomomi was love-starved. However, it didn’t mean she wasn’t right!</p><p>Yeah, this damn saboteur really started messing up with her in ways she wasn’t sure how to navigate. She wanted to find the courage to talk to him a bit more, but she couldn’t convince her voice to speak up, not when so many little butterflies threatened to escape from her belly. </p><p>Instead, she gulped down and continued working on her mangled leg, her face hot behind her mask and with Ace Visconti watching the scene from afar, rolling his eyes at the two dumb and young people. </p><p>These two would-be lovebirds needed help, and if there was one thing the suave man knew how to do, it was definitely bringing Lady Luck to a situation. </p><p>****** </p><p>- Jake, son, I need to talk to you.</p><p>Jake threw an uninterested glance toward his visitor. In all honesty, Ace didn’t appear to be that much older than him, but strangely enough, the Argentinian didn’t seem to have a problem addressing him in a patronizing way every chance he got. Usually, it was son, as stated above, but usually, the lucky man would use the irritating boy, as if Jake wasn’t a full grown adult. The survivalist might have been stuck in Hell/purgatory/evil dimension for eternity, but when he died (he couldn’t see the real him, his old self from his past life back at home, still alive), he was very much past the teenage years, thank you very much. </p><p>- Yeah? he muttered before focusing once again on his given task.</p><p>Probably annoyed and/or worried at Jake’s new found tendency of stalking and drooling after Yui (he really considered himself being subtle, but he wasn’t dumb enough to think people didn’t notice a certain change of character in him, especially during trials), Claudette had tasked him with collecting a rare plant he had already forgotten the name. Apparently, this organism had the incredible power of healing a would three times faster. How the Black woman discovered it and why in hell did it grow in such a strange and supernatural environment, Jake didn’t know, but he sure appreciated the distraction from Yui’s luscious ponytail. </p><p>Jake sighed inwardly: there he went again! This girl really did a number on him! He couldn’t think of anything else, not even the perilous situation he was in: indeed, Claudette had viciously omitted to tell him that this damn vegetal specie only seemed to grow beautifully in dangerous zones, notably too far in the forest and at the top of the tree he was now hanging from. Damn boots! He sure loved them for hiking, but for climbing a gigantic tree with little place to fit his body between the branches, he definitely would have preferred some beat up running shoes. </p><p>As Jake stretched his arm to try to grab the infuriatingly far little tufts of pink and purple, Ace grinned and prepared to voluntarily dive into the touchy subject of Jake Park’s love life.</p><p>Come on, Ace, you can do it! his own little inner voice, Antonio, whispered. You survived against that crazy boxing lady. You’ll be fine giving unsolicited advice to a famously grumpy and constantly pissed off individual.</p><p>Fucking Antonio! Sometimes, Ace really thought he voiced things out a certain way simply to stress him out. </p><p>- Well, the lucky man started, clearing his voice. I came to give you advice.</p><p>Hands in pocket, he watched as Jake retrieved his arm, hand still empty, to predictably throw him a suspicious look.</p><p>- About what? If you want to teach me how to fight once again -</p><p>Ace immediately cut him off, gesturing dismissively:</p><p>- Nah, it’s not about that! I came to talk to you about women, son.</p><p>If money had worth something in this hellhole, Ace, always a gambler at heart, would have spend his very last dime on betting about Jake’s face colour at this very moment. Even though his skin was protected from prying eyes by the dark mask, the gambler knew for sure it was beet red.</p><p>Anyway, maybe it was the topic or the condescending tone, but Jake was having none of this crap.</p><p>- I’m not interested, Visconti. Talk to me about gens, hooks, tactics, even the Clown’s latest fashion choice, but keep this subject for your pal Ash.</p><p>With that, Jake resumed his task at hand, which was hanging precariously on an old branch about 15 meters off the ground. Ace chuckled and took a step closer:</p><p>- You know what’s the difference between Adam Francis and you, son?</p><p>In a splendid metaphor for how his heart sank, the branch on which Jake stood cracked and let the survivor fall into the voi- well, onto the ground in a big thud. </p><p>Fuck, I broke something! he thought.</p><p>- Fuck, I broke something! he whined, biting into his scarf to stifle his pained moans.</p><p>Biting back a sob and focusing on the reason of his fall, that is the infuriating man in front of him, the survivalist managed to say through his clenched teeth:</p><p>- No. Oh, please, do tell! </p><p>Ace gave a victorious grin, even at the ridiculously weak eye-roll Jake had given him with his mock supplication. Thus, he supplied with the stupidly evident reason:</p><p>- He talks, boy. He talks.</p><p>Aaah, so that was it! Jake felt like the secret of the universe had been given to him in the form of a sleazy man with sunglasses. Despite the pain cursing through his body, he couldn’t help but feel annoyed at the unsolicited intrusion in his weak attempt at a love life. Did his infatuation with the mysterious Yui that obvious and, most importantly, did he look that helpless regarding dating? </p><p>Yeah, he wasn’t sure what hurt the most between his ego and his rapidly growing ankle. </p><p>- Great! Now, will you help me get up?</p><p>- Of course, son!</p><p>Ace grabbed his arm and helped him stand up, pensively looking at the tree that had just betrayed Jake :</p><p>- Claudette told me I would find you around here. Did you manage to grab one of these ugly flowers before falling?</p><p>Jake glared at the little tufts sitting innocently on their branch. Cunts.</p><p>- Nah. I’ll show Claudette where they are when I’ll feel better, though.</p><p>He turned around, still supported by his gambler friend, and his heavy breathing soon turned to an annoyed huff when he spotted a fake hand from behind a tree.</p><p>- Are you fucking serious? barked the survivalist to – well, both men.</p><p>Ash suddenly appeared and he waved his human hand, a sly look on his face :</p><p>- So, you need help, huh?</p><p>Jake didn’t have the patience nor the resilience to simply say ‘’No, let me be’’. </p><p>* * *</p><p>He was currently sitting on a log, his left leg popped up on his makeshift sofa, Claudette at his side. The botanist was tending to his strained ankle, her tinctures and somewhat clean bandages placed carefully next to her. Nobody had asked Jake how he had managed to hurt himself so badly because, in an uncharacteristic display of character, Claudette kept nagging him about her damn plants, thus informing everyone of his dramatic fall.</p><p>- You know, Jake, she whispered for the umpteenth time, dabbing at his now gigantic ankle, the plants you were supposed to bring back would have healed your ankle in no time!</p><p>He hissed when she carefully lifted his leg, the light of the campfire dancing on his tanned skin.</p><p>- Well, they shouldn’t have decided to grow so high up in a freaking tree, then!</p><p>The Black woman glared at him, but didn’t say anything else : she was still gentle while healing him, though, which he was grateful for. His eyes landed on Ace and the man smirked, playing with his eternal deck of cards.  As much as he annoyed him, Jake couldn’t say the gambler hadn’t been helpful with what he now referred to as the ‘’Biker Problem’’. He couldn’t believe he didn’t think about interacting more with Yui! Like, it seemed too good to be true: a few words here and there, ‘’getting to know the lady’’, an ear-dropping Ash had supplied without being invited to… It really seemed like a marvelous strategy. Nevertheless, in true Jake fashion, his excitement only transpired by a slightly quicker breathing. In his previous life, the Asian man would have never tolerated anyone trying to snoop in his personal affairs (or lack of), but he still thanked Ace and Ash for their unwanted help. Both men talked excitedly over one another during all of their little ‘’manly chit chat’’, as Ash coined the meeting, which was really Jake being dragged through the uneven forest foliage and listening to both of the men argue and excitedly interrupt each other. Still, he had caught what they wanted to make him understand : he had to stop hiding to start dating. </p><p>It really was simple, yet,  the heavy bush he particularly affectionate to spy on an unsuspecting Yui would be thoroughly missed. </p><p>- There you go, said Claudette, securing a complex looking bandage made of leaves around his pained <br/>leg. It will keep your leg from moving too much.</p><p>He put the mask down slightly to thank his friend :</p><p>- Thanks, Claudette. Sorry about your ugly flowers.</p><p>She rolled her eyes :</p><p>- You’ll find them beautiful when they’ll speed up your recovery!</p><p>He shrugged and stood up, limping toward the forest : it was very noisy, as usual, and he wanted a bit of privacy.</p><p>Jake took a few steps in the dark forest and checked around him carefully before sliding to the ground : he didn’t want to be jumpscared by a crouched Pig like last time! He breathed in and closed his eyes. The smells were pleasant and he was thankful for the spider god to have made an actual effort in reproducing them. Here, in the silence and his leg stretched, he couldn’t help but focus on the pain pulsating through him. </p><p>He sighed : what a shitty life he led.</p><p>The survivalist often reminisced on what he remembered from his past life : the faltering details of his mom’s face, the blank expression in his brother’s eyes, the life suck out of them by their pressuring father… He was so unhappy and stressed, before he escaped to live like a recluse in the woods. There, surrounded by animals, the calm breeze, and the hard, but rewarding life of an autosufficient person, he felt at peace for once. </p><p>Evidently, it couldn’t have last. </p><p>Now, he was stuck in a strange and horrifying realm, with scarred and hurt people he appreciated, sure, but would never measure up to the peacefulness of his little cabin in the woods. An introvert by nature, he found it hard to constantly be surrounded by people. </p><p>Nevertheless, it felt like being surrounded by Yui all the time wouldn’t be too bad. Maybe she would like to sit with him here, her head on his shoulder, and breathe in the wonderful smells of this artificial nature…</p><p>Jake almost slapped himself : he was getting delirious! Yui was too extraverted to force herself to be stuck with him. He was the weird, yet resourceful loner. He didn’t recognize the ache he felt in his chest at these depressing thoughts, but if he had to guess, he would say it was probably a crushing feeling of fatality. The saboteur felt too shy and, strangely for him, too self-conscious to even be able to chat with the prettiest girl he had seen so far in the Fog. </p><p>He chuckled, amazed at how Yui had encaptured his heart even without seeing her face completely. Hell, he had not even talked to her that much! He was ridiculous. </p><p>Jake was about to fall asleep, the water in his eyes almost falling all over his cheeks, when he heard the distinct sound of a branch cracking. </p><p>Shit, he cursed mentally. The young man brought his leg back to him as fast as he could, trying to be stealthy despite the pain. He tried to calm himself down, but his heart refused to slow down its beating, the sound of it echoing through Jake’s head. The saboteur knew perfectly that the killers, somehow, couldn’t attack them outside of trials, but meeting face to face with your everyday assailants wasn’t something extremely pleasurable. He slowly cocked his head where the sound came from and felt his heart sank at the sight before him.</p><p>Yui was about a few meters away, looking the same as she always was. However, she wasn’t alone : Adam Francis was right in front of her, his hand placed on her cheek and murmuring sweet nothings in her ear. Well, Jake didn’t hear what the man was saying, but he sure as hell didn’t seem to talk about the political situation in the Fog. </p><p>This time, the survivalist couldn’t stop a tear from rolling down his cheek. He hated himself for feeling so… so betrayed. It was stupid, really : Yui didn’t know him and he didn’t know her. She could date whoever she wanted, whenever she wanted, in this shitty universe. He was acting like a spoiled brat who longed for something he could never have. From what Jake could tell, Adam seemed educated, intelligent… He was also good-looking. There was nothing surprising in Yui feeling attracted toward the Black man : hell, even his own father would clearly prefer Adam over Jake!</p><p>He quietly stood up and made his way back toward the camp, limping all along and feeling nothing but pathetic. It was as if all the old wounds he thought he had buried sufficiently deep inside of him were coming back to the surface to cut him deeper. </p><p>Jake was acting like a dumbass, but couldn’t help it, although he soon realized what made him feel so hurt : he was sure he had found a way to be happy once again, but just like his cabin, his animals, and his peace of mind, it was all taken away from him way too fast.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you for reading! I promise it won't be as depressing, next chapter! :)</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you for reading!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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